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Grand Matriarch
The Grand Martriarch is a modified Sevesh-Torn-Bhrix (or STB or "Stub" in Basic speaking communities) 2485 Laupendo-class Military Logistic Freighter made by Condorat Avionics Industries owned by Zentaire Riin Atavern. Formerly a part of the Isenbardiae Armed Forces, the ship served though the Isenbard - Piracy Conflict that lasted from 7 BBY to 4 ABY, before being finally retired along with her sister ships in 16 ABY. Characteristics Like other Laupendo-classes, the Grand Matriarch contains an impressive array of armament for a logistic freighter, with a total of 10 weapon turrets in total, with 8 anti-ships and 2 anti-personnel. However, unlike the unmodified models, the Zentaire replaced the weapon set with the the laser equivalent, as projectiles for the traditional slugthower that is a commonplace in Stra'gemfal is rendered rare in the greater galaxy. The 8 anti-ship laser cannons in a form of a ball turret are located symmetrically throughout the ship, with two in the bow and stern of the gas sack, one on the dorsal and the other on ventral surface respectively. The other 4 are located on mid-ship, two on each side,and situated on top and bottom of the extension that lead to the starship's main engines. The two anti-personnel blaster cannons take shape of a conventional turret and are located on each side of the vertical spire that hangs below the bridge. Like all starships created in Stra'gemfal, or "airbags" as off-worlders dubbed them, the largest portion of the ship is the green, rigid gas sack that is located above the actual ship's chassis. Within the gas sack, there is a total of 16 independent gas bladders filled with light gases. This buoyancy method is a shared method of all starships created on the isolated planet, for repulsorlifts only adorn smaller, lighter vehicles. The "skin" of the gas sack is actually composed of several layers. The outermost layer is composed of a thin sheet of light metal composite. Beneath it is a flexible metal mesh that help dissipate the force of impact, should collision occurred; which is further aided by a series of hexagonal high-impact ceramic plates that sits underneath the mesh. The last layer is a layer of self-healing polymer to seal any leaks should a gas bladder be punctured by small arms fire. In the bow and stern section of the gas sack is further reinforced by thick metal cone that noticeably rises above the rest of the gas sack's hull, and is usually made from durasteel. The lift-weight ratio is 90-10 in Stra'gemfal's atmosphere, but considering that it is thinner than the average atmosphere of the planets in the atmosphere, the craft requires power to descend on planets with denser atmosphere; otherwise, the craft would simply float in the thinner upper atmosphere. Like other warships made during the same era, Laupendo-classes boasts a vertical "spire" that extends downward from the bridge that can be compared with the Old Republic's Hammerhead-class cruiser's vertical bridge alignment. This structure houses most of the ship's major systems including the particle shield generator (in GM's case, a KDY deflector shield as well), hyperdrive, and life support. Amiss the systems, the spire contained a maintenance shaft that can be accessed though the hatch on the raised boarding ramp. This spire rotates 90 degrees upon landing to create a flat landing surface and allow the six pneumatic anchors shooters to point at the ground. The gas-operated anchor launchers are located at leading edge of the spire, 3 at each side. Each launchers are on a gimbal that have a small degree of fire to allow the craft to be in the most stabilized landing position. Laupendo-classes are equipped with three kinds of landing anchors, stored with their respective barrels. The landing anchors are: *Impact Anchor: Made from reinforced durasteel, the anchor is made to punch into hard surfaces. *Magnetic Anchor: To latch on metallic surfaces, the anchor is made up of electromagnetic sheets. *Unstable-Surface Anchor: A long metal shaft with barbs to sink into soft/unstable grounds such as soil. All the anchors are attached to the launcher by a two inch thick metal cable that is kept in a spool next to the barrels. The GM is equipped with the four engines that is stock to most Laupendo-classes, but given its age and the craft's intent to be used on galactic environment, they were heavily modifed. The two CAI Kwesh-Sroo 394 Fusion located on the stern of the cab have been refitted with components ranging from Incom to Subpro to increase its thrust output to withstand the gale-force winds in the more turbulent planet. The main engines, the CAI Yuun-Gjanx 01.42 Turbonduct, located midship also got a modification with parts from Kuat Drive Yards and Corellia Engineering Corporation for the same reason. The interior of the craft is quite basic, with an expansive cockpit mounted on the upper level along with the sleeping quarter behind it and a small refresher station behind that. Nestled between the cockpit and the sleeping quarter is a small turbolift shaft that leads to the lower level between the boarding area and the massive cargo hold. Behind the cargo hold lies the munition bay which have been replaced with blaster gas tank. The same area also hosts a robust power generator and back up hyperdrive. The boarding ramp of the craft is only revealed when the spire rotates to a landing position. After lowering, the ramp would also extends downwards to provide a path all the way to the ground. When closed and spire is in flight position, the ramp also have a hatch that leads to the maintenance shaft within the spire.